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Show PROPOSED LI WOULD TREBLE MINEML LEVY Administration Will Try to Do by Legislative Action What People Turned Down. STATE PLANNING NUMEROUS SUITS Many Concerns Charged With Evading Payments on Net Proceeds Since ; Statehood. r Rumors of an entirely new line of attack at-tack to be instituted by Governor Simon Bamberger in connection with his pledge to return to the state $2,000,000 which, had been deflected from the proper channels, were afloat around the capitol yesterday, coincident with the introduction introduc-tion in the senate by the committer on education of a proposed amendment to the statutes relating to mine taxation. taxa-tion. By legislative enactment the administration adminis-tration plans to put into effect the system sys-tem of taxing mines and mining properties prop-erties which failed in the form of a constitutional amendment last fall. The proposed measure provides for the taxation taxa-tion of mines and mining properties on valuation, as heretofore, plus not to exceed three times the net proceeds of the mines. The recovery of state moneys, however, how-ever, is not to be brought about by the taxation, but the bill proposes to include under the head of mines all minerals, metals, hydrocarbons and practically everything taken from the ground except ex-cept soil and agricultural products. It is understood that the governor interprets in-terprets the present statutes as placing in the same class as mines all properties in institutions concerned in the production produc-tion of cement, petroleum, natural gas, asphaltum, alum, soda, sulphur, salt, borax, marble, mica, slate, gypsum, limestone, lime-stone, phosphate, potash, kaolin, fire clay and all other non-metallic minerals. miner-als. Many Evade Taxes. Many of these concerns, it is rumored, ru-mored, have not been paying taxeB on the annual net proceeds, and it is such back taxes which the governor expects to collect that will go a long way toward to-ward making up the $2,000,000 which he has promised to return to the state treasury. It is estimated, according to the report, that many of the concerns have paid no taxes on net proceeds since statehood, and that the amount recoverable will be approximately $2,-000,000. $2,-000,000. The specific mention of the long list of non-metallic minerals In the bill presented present-ed It Is believed. Is to strengthen the case of the state in numerous suits which are planned to be instituted at an early date. The f2f),00U appropriation made by the legislature for Investigation purposes. It Is reported, is to be used extensively in the prosecution of these suits. Is Governor's Scheme. Governor Bamberger declined to comment com-ment on the rumors last night, but admitted ad-mitted that the bill proposing to place a lax of not to exceed three times the net revenue on mines had been introduced at his suggestion. AVith reference to tbe constitutional provision that mines are assffted that he had had the advice of a number of the leading attorneys of the state to the effect that a constitutional amendment was unnecessary to Increase the taxation to three times the net proceeds. pro-ceeds. "I have not gone Into this matter without with-out due consideration," the governor asserted. as-serted. "I have given the matter a great deal of study, even before I assumed tho duties of the office, and I have called into consultation some of the leading attorneys at-torneys of the state. Sections 2, 3 and 4 of artb-le 13 of the constitution not only say that mines may be taxed at the value of tbe land and Improvements plus the net proceeds, but they provide that tho legislature shall provldo by law a uniform uni-form and equal rate of assessment on all property In the slate. I am satisfied that the measure proposed Is constitutional." Changes Proposed. The bill proposes to make several minor changes in existing laws, such as chan"es in the dates for meetings of the state, ' board of equalization. The principal changes are in the specification of the various producers of non-metallic minerals, miner-als, which are to be Included under the statute and must make annual reports of ' the net proceeds of tle properties Under lis terms the board of eoualiza-on eoualiza-on shall at Its meeting commencing the first Monday in March, assess the net proceeds of all mines in the state at a valuation not exceeding three times the actual net proceeds derived from each |